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Seated Female Nude by Andre Derain (1880-1954)

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ANDRE DERAIN (1880-1954)

SEATED FEMALE NUDE 

With atelier stamp and a later sale stamp, pencil on light brown tracing paper
46.5 x 35.5cm and 26 x 19.5cm

André Derain had a major role in the development of two of the most significant artistic movements of the early-20th century. He, Henri Matisse, and Maurice de Vlaminck were responsible for generating works with a totally new style which would become Fauvism and his association with Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque was integral to early Cubism. Nevertheless, his contribution as the generator of the ideas behind these movements is constantly debated, and some consider his work derivative. This is due in part to the fact that, continually in search of artistic meaning and attempting to create a timeless art removed from the specificity of the modern age, he experimented with different stylistic idioms. Whichever side of the Derain debate you end up on, we can all appreciate his use of expressive vibrant colour, his simplification of form, and his fascination with primitive art were constants throughout his work and played a major role in the creation and propagation of early Modern Art.

Derain was one of the founders of the Fauve artistic movement along with Matisse. Although fascinated by the world around him, a popular subject among contemporary artists, he wanted to give a much greater appreciation to the expressionistic qualities of paint. His works are characterized by dense, vibrant brushworks that attract the viewer's attention as much as the subject itself.

Derain's interest in primitive masks began after viewing those exhibited at the Negro Museum in London, and he was one of the first to collect tribal art from Africa. It is likely that he was responsible for the interest in primitive elements espoused by Cubist artists such as Picasso and Braque. Derain was briefly interested in Cubist stylistic elements himself but his stylistic exploration of it was very brief.